When I was considering purchasing my cottage, I looked in every corner, opened every closet, studied the floor where it met the wall, and breathed in he air. I asked the previous owners questions about water spots in the middle of the carpet, what the shop-vac in the basement was used for, and if they had ever experienced water damage. With all this, and an inspector, I still didn’t learn about the issues they had with water coming into the basement until after I took possession.

The night I took possession, I slept in my new cottage in the middle of a rainstorm. The rainstorm opened my eyes to the water rotting the cottage’s siding as it poured between the eaves and the chimney and the water spots in the basement that were at that moment, wet to the touch. I later learned that there was water in the walls that was travelling under the floor and coming up through cracks in different areas of the basement, larvae and roaches feeding off the moisture, and black mold.

I knew I needed to waterproof the basement, but then I had to decide between internal and external waterproofing. I spoke to different companies, friends, family members…really, anyone who would listen and offer advice. I couldn’t decide what to do. Do I stop the water from coming into the cottage? But then what might the contractor encounter when they start excavating the area of the Canadian Shield that my cottage sits on, will they have to rip off the decks that wrap around the cottage, move the air conditioning unit, landscape? If I chose to waterproof the inside of the cottage, I wouldn’t be stopping the water from coming into the cottage, but I could be sure it was being routed out of the cottage (if not through the drainage system around the interior perimeter of the basement, then through the sump pump).

I chose to go with the interior waterproofing. Not only was it less expensive, but the company that recommended the interior waterproofing also offered a warranty that the other company did not.

I am not yet sure which option was better and I am waiting for the spring thaw before I even begin to put my basement back together. However, one benefit that I can already attest to is what I learned when I removed the drywall and insulation. This exposed mold and water damage that I might not have otherwise known about. The walls were cleared right to the concrete thus making me feel like I was really able to clean up the water damage in the basement (and I also discovered and fixed some really interesting wiring).

My suggestions:

• Purchase a moisture meter (it seems like for $100, you can get a pretty decent one)
• Ask a lot of direct questions of the previous owner and get the answers in writing (the previous owner had on a dehumidifier, which masked the musty smell).
• When waterproofing your basement, choose a reputable company that has been around for a long time and has a warranty they can stand behind.
• Know all the costs going in (remember, whatever gets taken out will need to go back in…and you never know what you might find).
• Cover up all the vents if working inside the cottage (the layer of dust that went through the ducts, which I now also have to clean, was astonishing).
• If you have the choice, do not put the drywall back up until you have experienced a thaw to see what happens.